Ten Years Ago

This is a blog post I’ve been meaning to write for a while, but due to holiday festivities, I’ve definitely been slacking as far as reading, writing, and blogging go. Now that Christmas has once again come and gone, I finally have time to sit down with my computer and catch up on all the work that I’ve so blissfully and willingly ignored. Okay, maybe not blissfully. I actually really, really enjoy what I do. But it has been wonderful catching up and spending time with my friends and family.

A couple of weeks back, I had a girls night with two of my closest friends from high school. We haven’t seen each other nearly as much as I’d like in the past ten years, but I’m hoping that we can change that.

As we sat around in one of their brand new, super fancy, super spacious houses, we started talking about our senior year of high school and where we thought that we would be when we reached 28 (or in our cases, almost 29…).

Friend A thought that she would be married with kids, a house, and a great career. Today, she has a good job and spends most of her free time horseback riding.

Friend B thought that she would be living like a gypsy, traveling the world. Today, she’s married with a great house and a career that makes her good money, but that she’s not all that passionate about. She would rather be an artist.

As for me? I thought I’d be living at the beach and taking care of marine mammals. That’s all I wanted. Part of me still desperately wants for it to happen and dares to dream that one day, it might. I never dreamed that I’d end up writing books. Of course, now that I’m almost 29, I can’t imagine doing anything else.

If there’s one thing I’ve learned in my twenties, it’s that life doesn’t always play out the way you imagine it will, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. I know that I’ve written similar sentiments on this blog before, but honestly, it comforts me. I like knowing that things happen for a reason and having some assurance that maybe I am where I’m meant to be in life.

Contentment

When I woke up this morning, I found myself thinking about all the things that I want to happen in 2017. Most importantly, perhaps, is finishing the four books I have in the works and getting them published and out into the world. I only published one book this year (though I’ve had short stories in other publications) and somehow, that feels weird, like I’ve been slacking off. Granted, I’ve been traveling more and trying to learn about marketing, but I’m definitely not a one-book-a-year kind of girl.

Then I began to wonder if there’s anyone out there who can actually say, “Yeah, I did everything I wanted to do in 2016. I am accomplished. I am content.” If they exist, I must admit, a part of me envies them. The other part of me, however, can’t help but wonder, “If they’re perfectly content, then what do they hope for? What drives them?”

By the way, yes, this is pretty much exactly what you get out of the book, Who Moved My Cheese?

Still, I think it’s worth noting that it’s okay to feel like you have more to accomplish. It’s okay to feel like you could have done more this year. Heck, I think that’s pretty human. Do any of us ever truly live up to our full potential? It would be wonderful if we did and I do believe we should always try our best to do so, but we shouldn’t dwell on what hasn’t happened yet either.

I love having goals, having hopes, having dreams. I love having something to work for. I’ve been this way since I was little. True, my hopes and dreams have evolved and expanded a bit since I was seven, but for the most part, I still find myself enthralled by the possibilities of the future.

There is always room for improvement. I hope that I am still striving to improve myself and the world around me in fifty years. I hope I find joy, love, peace, excitement, adventure. But in a strange way, I hope I never find contentment.

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Ever in the After Cover Reveal!

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In Ever in the After, 13 authors come together to explore fantastical realms full of supernatural creatures, dark intrigue, and spells that may–or may not–be curses.

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This anthology features work by:

  • Melle Amade
  • Miracle Austin
  • J. A. Culican
  • Madeline Dyer
  • Jessica Hawke
  • Alaina Hebert
  • Elizabetta Holcomb
  • Stephanie Keyes
  • Christopher D. Morgan
  • Mandy Peterson
  • Alice Rachel
  • Cadence Rae
  • Jacqueline E. Smith

A must-have fantasy collection full of surprises, secrets, and strong teenagers who know what they need to do to succeed in these mystical realities.

Please add Ever in the After: 13 Fantasy Tales on Goodreads now!

Buy your copy of Ever in the After: 13 Fantasy Tales on April 1st, 2017!

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